


The Undead Scourge

by CaptainSophieStark



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:21:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26640577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainSophieStark/pseuds/CaptainSophieStark
Summary: Rita Skeeter's been hounding the Ministry to stop playing nice and finally stomp out vampires once and for all. When the news reaches a very old and very dangerous family of vampires in New Orleans, they decide they need to do something about her.
Relationships: Elijah Mikaelson & Klaus Mikaelson & Kol Mikaelson & Rebekah Mikaelson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	The Undead Scourge

"Niklaus, have you seen this?"

Elijah Mikaelson, oldest brother of the four Mikaelsons gathered in the room, held out a paper for his little brother Nik to take. The pictures on the front page moved, smiled, and waved, giving away the fact that this was no normal newspaper he even read the headlines.

Klaus took the paper and flipped it open, coming face to face with an article on the front page titled "Vampires: The Undead Scourge that Should Have Stayed Dead".

"And what is this supposed to be?" Nik skimmed the article as the two other vampires in the room, Kol and Rebekah, came over to see what was going on.

"That witch who's been writing smears about everyone in her government for months has apparently turned her attention to us," Elijah said, hands in his pockets as he stared at the offending newspaper.

"What do you mean?" asked Kol, taking the paper from Klaus so he could see for himself. Klaus glared at his younger brother, but Elijah spoke up again before things could get ugly.

"This... Skeeter woman... has taken around five-hundred words to say what really only takes a few: she thinks it's time for the wizards to take action and eradicate the vampires."

"She can't do that!" Rebekah chimed in, not bothering to take the paper from Kol to look for herself. "Their government has some law against it, don't they?"

"They have a law against attacking us, but no law to stop her from trying to convince them to change that practice," Elijah corrected.

"Well, if she thinks a bunch of wizards stand a chance against us she's in for a rude awakening," said Klaus, finally standing to join the loose circle his siblings had formed. "Why don't we go over there and show them just how big a mistake it would be to mess with us."

"I like the way you think, brother," said Kol, setting down the newspaper and grinning at Nik.

"Hold on a minute," said Elijah. "By all indications, the wizarding government still isn't foolish enough to make enemies of us. We have no reason to go after any of them."

Nik and Kol looked ready to argue, but Elijah continued before they could.

"This Skeeter woman, however... well, it might not be a bad idea to let her know just who she's messing with, up close and personal."

"Now that's the brother I know," said Rebekah, a grin slowly spreading across her face.

"Well then, you heard Elijah," said Nik. "Pack your bags everyone, we're going to London."

The four Originals wasted no time packing a few things and heading straight for the airport. Less than twenty-four hours after Skeeter's article hit the papers, the four siblings were heading out of downtown London, far into the country side to moors where muggles would never dream of venturing.

Thanks to the vast network of sources and informants the Mikaelsons had access to (along with a little compulsion once they'd touched down), they'd gotten a tip that Skeeter would be covering a Quidditch match happening outside the city that day. It would be the perfect place to ambush her and make sure she knew just what war with the vampires would mean for her and her kind.

"I bet I'd be great at Quidditch," said Kol, watching from the trees where he and his siblings stood, hidden. "I'd be a better Beater than any of them up there, swinging that bat around."

"You can't hit other people with the bat, Kol," Rebekah reminded him, rolling her eyes.

"Ah, that's where you're wrong, sister. You can't get caught hitting other people with the bat."

"Rebekah, Kol, if you could please focus..." said Elijah, drawing his siblings' attention back to the task at hand. "Now, if we really want to drive our point home, we have to make sure she realizes just how easily we could get to her, in any place at any time."

"There's no running or hiding from us," Nik continued, picking up where his brother left off. "And if you see us coming before we kill you, it's only because we wanted you to."

"Alright, we get it," Rebekah said. "Now what's the big plan you two were so intent about working on while we were flying over here?"

"You all might want to have a seat," said Nik. "This is going to take a while."

Klaus and Elijah took their siblings through the detailed plan they'd come up with on the plane. At the end of the day, Rita Skeeter would be standing in the woods face to face with the one and only Niklaus Mikaelson, scared out of her mind. But they had a point to prove before that.

Just like Elijah said, they wanted Rita to know how dangerous they were. That meant getting close to her, one at a time, all while she had no idea who they were or what they could do.

"Rebekah, you're first," said Elijah, wrapping up their explanation. "Then Kol, then me. Then we'll all meet back here to help Niklaus make our point."

"Can't wait," said Kol, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Let's get this party started."

****************

Rita Skeeter strutted through the crowds of wizards running around buying snacks or heading to their seats, surveying the area for anything of interest. One of the new players on the home team was getting a lot of media attention recently, and she figured it was time to have her say in the narrative. There were plenty of important people at the match too, and Rita was never one to miss an opportunity to dig up the start of another story.

Rita was in the middle of her lap of the stadium when she noticed a few Ministry employees clustered together. She kept her eyes on them as she walked, and the conversation appeared to be getting heated.

Quickly, Rita ducked around a corner, the perfect place to transform herself so she could overhear the Ministry wizards without being seen. Before she got the chance, however, she ran straight into someone who was hurrying along in the opposite direction, back the way Rita came.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" A pretty blonde witch was apologizing profusely to Rita, looking horrified at her mistake. "I wasn't watching where I was going on— oh my goodness, are you Rita Skeeter?"

Rita straightened up at the recognition, holding her nose in the air.

"That's right, I am. And who might you be?"

"My name's Rebekah. I'm such a big fan of the writing you do! Do you think I could get a picture with you?"

"Well, I suppose I have time for a quick picture," said Rita, her ego growing by the second. "I'm a very busy witch though, so this can't take long."

"Of course." Rebekah stepped closer to Rita, wrapping one arm around the journalist as she held a camera with the other. Rita smiled for the camera, feeling big and important with her newfound fan trying to get as close as possible. After the picture was taken she stepped away, her little fan glancing at the camera before looking back to Rita. "Thank you so much, Miss Skeeter. I'll never forget this, and I hope you won't either."

Rita hummed, only paying half attention as she walked away from the girl. She peeked back around the corner, but the Ministry wizards had cleared off. She missed the scoop this time, but now that she knew something was up she'd be sure to track down information as soon as the match was over.

Rita continued around the stadium, scanning the crowd as she went. She'd need to head to her seat soon, if she wanted material for her Quidditch story, but she figured a few more minutes couldn't hurt her.

"Psst." If she wasn't a trained journalist, Rita would have missed the sound all together. She turned toward the noise to see a young man peeking around a wall, his pleading eyes trained on her.

Rita started over cautiously, ready for whatever the situation brought. She kept in sight of the crowd as she reached the man, not ready to go somewhere deserted until she knew a bit more.

"Rita Skeeter?"

"Yes. Who are you and what do you want?"

"You're here to write a Quidditch story aren't you? About that new Chaser?"

"I am. Why? Do you have something for me?"

"I do. My brother's got a friend who works for the team, and he's been telling me all about how they feel about this new guy joining up. All the fans love him so much, it only seems right that somebody speaks up about the truth."

Rita was intrigued now. She stepped forward, towards her new source, until the two were safely hidden from prying eyes by a few buildings.

"And what is this truth, exactly?"

"He's a complete arse. He joined the team and started bossing everyone around, and he doesn't share the Quaffle. Everyone absolutely hates him, but he's so good management won't let them say anything about him. Most of the guys on the team wish he'd never come, and last time I visited my brother I heard a few of the Beaters talking about 'accidentally' taking him out of the game."

Rita's Quick Quotes Quill was working overtime trying to get all that down. She checked back over her notes to make sure she had everything, then turned back to her source.

"And can I get your name?"

"Kol. My name's Kol."

"Well, thank you very much for giving me the inside scoop, Kol. It was very brave of you, sharing the story no one else was willing to share. Do you have anything else for me?"

Kol looked around nervously, and Rita had to fight to control the excitement running through her veins. She'd just found a gold mine, and she was going to do whatever it took to get every last drop of gold she could get from it.

"Well... I don't really think I can say."

"Oh, come on Kol. You've come this far! You were right, the truth needs to be out there. If you just tell me what you know, I'll handle the rest. I'll make sure the story gets told like it should, and I promise I'll protect you, my noble source."

Kol paused, a slight smile on his face.

"You know, usually people call my brother noble. Not me."

"From what I've seen so far, that's a great injustice," said Rita, deciding to lay it on a little thicker.

"Well... alright then. I guess I really should tell someone. I don't know for sure, but my brother said some of the other guys on the team are planning to jump the new one. They're gonna take him out to the forest, straight back from the team's goals where no one can see, after the game. If the Beaters don't get him this game, they're going to take matters into their own hands."

"After the match..." Rita scribbled down Kol's instructions, already planning the headline she'd run with pictures of the fight tomorrow morning. "Thank you very much Kol. I won't forget this."

Rita turned and headed back towards the crowds, and as she did she could have sworn she heard Kol mutter under his breath something that sounded like "I'm sure you won't".

Rita shrugged the odd comment off, heading at last to her spot in the stands. She needed pictures of play for the article, too, and if one of the Beaters really did knock off their own star Chaser, she wanted to be in the front row to document it all.

Rita had front row seats in a private booth, and when she sat down she was pleasantly surprised to see a handsome man in a suit already seated next to her.

"Well hello there," she said, sitting down and giving the man a good look over the top of her glasses. She extended a hand for him to shake. "Rita Skeeter. Pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, I'm sure. My name is Elijah," he said, taking her hand gently. To Rita's surprise, instead of shaking her hand, he kissed it, and a confident smile spread across her face.

"Elijah. That's a nice name." He smiled at her and she kept eye contact for a moment before turning back to the match in front of her. She still had work to do, and a story this juicy was far more important than the handsome wizard sitting next to her.

In the end, Rita split her time between watching the match and talking to Elijah. He must have been important, if he were seated in this private box, but she had never seen him before. He explained that he was new to the Ministry, and was starting work in the Office of the Minister himself. Rita kept the pleasant conversation going, but inside she was ready to boil over with excitement. If Elijah were as interested in her as he seemed, she'd have a reliable source working right in the middle of the Minister's inner circle.

The match ended, and to Rita's dismay none of the Beaters had gone after their own teammate. However, she still had Kol's tip about the woods to look forward to, and Elijah had insisted on walking her down from the stands.

"Miss Skeeter, it was truly nice to meet you," he said, stopping right in front of her once they'd cleared the stadium. They were alone now, since Rita was taking an unconventional path into the woods to get the best angle on the coming fight, but before she left Rita wanted to cement this new relationship with Elijah.

"Likewise. And it's good to know such a charming and competent man will be working so closely with the Minister."

"Thank you. I'm glad you think so highly of me," Elijah said with a smile. He reached out to brush a stray curl out of Rita's face, trailing his hand down her neck before dropping it at his side again. "I look forward to our next meeting, Miss Skeeter."

"As do I. In fact, let's schedule something. Say, a week from today? Once you've gotten settled into your new job?"

Elijah just smiled, slowly heading back towards the crowds without taking his eyes of Rita.

"Don't you worry about that, Miss Skeeter. I have the feeling we'll be seeing each other again very soon."

With those cryptic words, he turned and walked away. Not exactly the ending Rita had been going for, but not bad on the whole. She made a mental note to check in with the Ministry to get his number and schedule an interview once she got back to her office.

Finally, Rita turned, heading further away from the crowds and into the woods. She crept through the trees towards the spot Kol had told her about, her camera at the ready. She debated turning into her animagus form, but decided against it since she couldn't take pictures as a beetle. Her photographer had ditched her earlier in the day, and she knew she'd have to start looking for a more reliable one once she got back to her office again.

Rita reached the spot that Kol had identified, but there was no one to be found. Probably the Quidditch players hadn't managed to get away from the officials and the locker room yet, since the match had just ended. She hugged a tree as she peered around the woods, perfectly silent, just laying in wait.

"That tree won't save you love."

Rita hadn't made a noise, and she'd been listening and watching carefully, but still, someone managed to sneak up on her. She nearly jumped out of her skin as she whirled around, coming face to face with a man standing a few feet away from her, a triumphant smirk on his face.

"And who are you?" she demanded, drawing up straighter. She got ready to go for her wand, just in case, but she was a fast enough draw that she didn't feel scared.

Yet.

"The name's Niklaus Mikaelson, although you probably haven't heard of me. Your government likes to keep my family and I a secret, so the wizards never know the real reason behind their protection of vampires."

Rita narrowed her eyes, her hand inching closer to the wand in her bag. Whatever this man wanted, he didn't sound friendly.

"See, the truth is, the government's not protecting us from you," Niklaus continued, taking a few steps forward. "They're protecting you from us."

Just like that, so fast Rita didn't even see him move, the man darted forward and ripped the wand out of her bag, returning to where he'd been standing in less than a second. He held her wand triumphantly in his hand, smiling at her with a dangerous look in his eyes.

"Well, if that's how you feel, how about you give me the real story," she said, trying desperately to find a way out of this situation. "Let me tell your side of it to the papers."

"Nice try love. But I'm not here to give you a story. I'm here because my family and I saw what you've been writing about us, and we needed to make a point."

The vampire—Rita was sure that's what he was now—threw her wand away with impossible speed, sending it flying somewhere in the forest. He started towards her, a murderous look in his eyes.

Rita back up frantically, and was about to turn and run when her back hit something solid. Not a tree, no, it was too soft for that, but an immovable object without a doubt.

Rita turned to see Elijah, staring down at her before looking up at Niklaus Mikaelson.

"Elijah, thank goodness. He's a vampire, he has to be stopped," she said, glaring accusingly at the man who'd now stopped in his tracks.

Elijah didn't say anything or do anything, so Rita turned her head to look up at him again, to see what was taking him so long. She was met with the face of a monster, black veins standing out from his eyes and fangs sticking out of his mouth.

Rita gasped and jumped away from him, staring at him in horror. After a second, she realized she'd turned her back on Klaus, so she spun around again, ending up with her back to a tree.

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" she asked in horror, looking between the two men.

"If we'd wanted to kill you, you would have been dead this morning," said Elijah, sounding bored. Rita looked confused, so he explained further. "Dear siblings, if you wouldn't mind?"

Rebekah and Kol stepped out of the trees, their faces contorted and teeth bared as Elijah's had been. Rita lurched backward, but didn't get very far with the tree in her way. She was surrounded, with nowhere safe to turn.

"I could have snapped your neck any time, but when you leaned in to take that snooty picture would have been an especially good moment," said Rebekah, speaking about Rita's death in a tone that almost implied indifference. "No one would have seen me, it would have been easy. Imagine all the stories that would have run about you, the bitchy journalist who got her neck snapped by some mysterious force while she was trying to dig up dirt on another person for a smear campaign."

"No, little sister, you've got it all wrong," said Kol, stepping forward a bit. The excitement in his eyes was almost worse than Rebekah's boredom, as Rita listened. "This stadium is filled with loud people, most of them screaming! I could've drained her completely behind those buildings, and nobody would've thought anything of her cries."

"You're missing the point, Kol," Rebekah sighed, completely ignoring the horror on Rita's face. "We, as vampires, could kill her, and no one would know we did it. A body drained of blood completely defeats the purpose!"

"Uh, ever heard of hiding a body? I know they're all wizards and have magic to find things or whatever, but I've been hiding bodies for a thousand years. Their silly little spells wouldn't stand a chance against me."

Elijah hummed, speaking up again. "Well, whatever method you want to use, I could have killed you after the match as well, since you were so determined to go into the woods alone without ever worrying about taking me with you."

Rita shivered as she remembered Elijah's hand on her neck, realizing now that it had been a threat and not a sign of affection.

"And of course, I could have killed you at any time while you were stumbling around out here, all alone," Klaus finished. "And just because we keep saying alone, don't think that means anything. If we hadn't taken care of your little cameraman earlier today, we'd be just as willing to kill both of you out here as we are to kill just you."

All the blood drained out of Rita's face at Nik's words. Her photographer. Of course they had something to do with that, he'd never deserted her before.

"Now, don't worry too much about him," said Elijah, speaking up again as he came closer. "He's going to be just fine, once he recovers from the knock on his head Kol delivered. You should really be worrying about yourself. My family and I don't take kindly to people campaigning to start a war with us, even though we could win it without blinking."

"You see love, we can't be killed," Nik added, closing the gap between him and Rita as his brother had. "So even if we didn't have super-speed, and compulsion, and super strength, and a million other advantages, we would still win in the end. We're the enemy you can never defeat."

"Which is why your government so wisely chose not to make us an enemy," said Elijah. "And I suggest, for your own health, you follow their lead."

Rita was frozen in fear, glancing between the four vampires as they stared her down. After a few moments of silence, Elijah rolled his eyes before continuing to speak to her.

"What I mean to say is, we came here to ensure you didn't write another piece like your most recent one... what was it called again?"

""Vampires: The Undead Scourge that Should Have Stayed Dead"," Kol piped up.

"Yes, thank you Kol. We don't want to see you writing anything like that again. Do you understand?"

Rita nodded frantically, still not daring to hope that they'd actually let her leave alive.

"And don't forget, she has to stick up for us if anyone else writes things like that."

"Yes, thank you for reminding me Rebekah." Elijah glanced at his little sister then turned back to Rita. "Should any of your colleagues decided to follow your lead with that last article, it is now your job to set them straight on the merits of vampires and the existing laws. Agreed?"

Rita nodded again, like she was headbanging at a metal concert at super speeds.

"Good. Then we'll leave you here, breathing and without being compelled. But be warned: If we have to return, you will not get such a happy ending."

"And neither will your photographer," Nik added. "Or your editor. Or your publisher. Or anyone you've ever worked with or been close to."

The four vampires stared at Rita for a few minutes, each with different versions of a smile on their faces, as Rita stood there petrified. Finally, they backed up and started walking away, apparently satisfied that they'd made their point. As soon as they were out of sight, Rita sighed a breath of relief and started slumping down the tree.

In a flash, Kol was back in front of her, appearing out of thin air barely an inch away from her. Rita jumped backwards and hit the tree, hard, as Kol put one hand on either side of her head, trapping her there.

"Oh, and write better news about Quidditch," he said, an easy grin never leaving his face. "If we all have to read your dreadful writing for the rest of your career to keep you honest, I don't want to be tearing my hair out with every new issue."

Rita nodded with wide eyes, and Kol sped away as quickly as he'd come. Rita sank to the ground, half expecting one of them to pop up again. They didn't, but it was a long time before she could stand on her wobbly legs again and begin her search through the forest for her wand, wherever Klaus had thrown that.

"That was fun!" said Kol, the blonde witch already mostly of out his mind as the family boarded a plane back to New Orleans. "I almost hope another journalist picks up the cause so we can do this again."

"I don't. That was far too much time wasted watching Quidditch when there are so many other things to be done in the Quarter," said Elijah.

"Well then next time let me watch the Quidditch, and you can do the boring part of hiding behind walls and whispering and whatever," said Kol.

"Kol, we all know you're too hot headed to ever play the charming gentleman," sniffed Rebekah.

"She's right, you know," Klaus agreed. Kol shoved him into Rebekah, and the three scuffled all the way up the jet ramp and onto the plane as Elijah just sighed.

"Don't break anything," he said, relaxing into a seat as far from his siblings as possible and opening the book he'd been wanting to read earlier, before The Daily Prophet had arrived. This demonstration from his siblings was simultaneously the reason they'd compelled the use of a private jet and why they couldn't have nice things, he thought to himself as the plane took off.

Rita Skeeter and her articles were all but forgotten by the Originals as they flew across the Atlantic, they were of so little worth. But Rita Skeeter would never forget the time she crossed the Original family and lost just about everything but her life.

Those were not the kind of people she'd be stupid enough to mess with again.


End file.
